Hateful Burden: Book Review
Author: Natalie Gibson
Genre: thriller/horror/psychological
A troubled girl brought up in an unloving family
environment in a pre-modern era blacks out, only to awake in an insane asylum
in a time where modern medicine wasn’t available and cures were more like
torture.
So we start this book from the girl’s point of view she
explains her home life which isn’t too good a possibly perverted stepfather and
a childlike mother. After being told she is ugly because she is growing womanly
lumps blacks out. I thought the beginning here ran a little too fast with only
minor insights or explanations to begin with. These were soon to be quashed
with further reading.
She awakes in West Freeman Asylum for Lunatics, where
she’s apparently been for quite some time as explained quite distastefully by Doctor
Federick there. She killed her parents which I’ll leave to the readers to find
out how.
Here we get quite an insight that she could be quite
dangerous as made out, it was around here I started to get absorbed by
Natalie’s writing despite the small description at the beginning so don’t let
that put you off as I soon realised that was all that was needed. As she
explains the girls dire situation and treatment in the insane asylum to great
effect.
Though at this point I was still a little detached from
the girl as I didn’t know who she was or had much of a personal connection other
than her age and apparent bad family life. I felt I would have liked to know
her a little better to really appreciate the excellent description of her torture
at the hands of the asylums staff.
When the asylum gets an apparent refit the story suddenly
spins on its head here and we get that much needed insight but not only that,
an actual explanation as to why the story is strangely detached this made me
smile no end.
The girl who is telling the story is apparently 232 and
some Sally (her better half?) has now told her that she shouldn’t have been
telling the story from a retrospective. Talk about turn around I knew from this
point on I had at least an above average book in my hands.
When she is later visited in her new room by Judith and
Doctor Federicks wife Hester, to which is a surprise to the girl, who now
introduces herself as Ramillia, see here comes the connections as Ramillia and
Hester chat and they get to know each other we learn about our little
protagonist and get our first glimpse there’s more to this than meets the eye,
aside from the 232 age thing and Sally of course!
The better treatment we find out is by Ramillia’s distant
cousin one Sir Julian Lawrence to whom she was betrothed to many year previous,
he’s both rich and a doctor. Ramillia is eventually freed and we follow her
adventures as we descend into the macabre and horrific as we learn of carriers
and people able to jump into the bodies of others and the touched and Incolas who
can do these acts.
In Natalie’s usual style the book does include some mild
erotica and rude bits, which I enjoyed as the main girl from the descriptions
in my mind at least was reasonably hot.
This is good because as any imaginative reader will tell
you it’s the input and the mind that bring these things to life. It’s later
again that you learn that this touch power is what started the whole thing at
the beginning. To begin with every things quite ok and she slowly learns about
touched people and carriers, which I will leave to you the reader to read
about.
There’s more to add that Sally is one of them Incolas of
some sorts that helps Ramillia in some states, Ramillia can leave her body and
Sally takes over to protect her from certain acts that I won’t give away. It
seems when we learn that Ramillia is pregnant Julian’s ultimate plans near the
end are revealed to make children carriers to which Paetus another touched
person we met early on has first claim over.
Ramillia is set against the way she is treated. The book
comes to a surprising end in which Sally and Ramillia join as one and they share
everything that has happened, giving Ramillia a better control over a power
she’s always had.
Characters
Ramillia, initially a disturbed child that we find out is
part of some master plan later, a good solid main character.
Julian, Ramillia’s distant cousin with designs on her
with the touch and part of the master plan, another solid character
Paetus, Julian’s friend also has the touch and in on the
plan, didn’t like this guy much very nasty
Sally and Incola that seemingly helps Ramillia
This of course is a mild review of the book I could go
into more detail and spoil a whole lot as the book I reviewed was only 103 pages
long, so if I go into too much detail I’m sure I’ll give too much away, but I
hope you got the gist of it from this review. Also don’t be put off by the way
it ends there is more parts to come!
Over all as a start to a series it’s a very good read, I
will admit some bits did puzzle me and some bits could be edited a little
better but I’m not talking no massive chunks there I mean some lines could just
be made a little simpler or something explained just a bit more. I explained
some of the things I thought were flaws which then span me around on my head earlier
in the review. These are some of the main reasons I enjoyed this book so much
just when you think.
Natalie is a budding writer who I have had the pleasure
to befriend and for someone who hasn’t wrote a massive amount in this genre and
for a first major foray into horror/thriller territory I give her full marks in
her effort and hope she better refines this new found skill in future forays
into this genre, books which I hope she gives me the chance once again to read
and review.
So Natalie as your first steps as an indie writer in this
area I salute you and fully recommend this book for a lazy afternoon or two’s
reading, yes it has flaws but I can only see this improving over time your book
gets a solid four out of five stars and The Horror Nations recommendation
Please I implore you all readers of my fine blog to
search for Natalie on amazon like rate buy her stuff so she’s encouraged to
write more of this. You can find her on Facebook under Author Natalie Gibson and
like etc. and show her your support there http://www.amazon.co.uk/Natalie-Gibson/e/B007UT880I/ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_1?qid=1359436346&sr=8-1
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